Major flooding following tornado causes a giant sinkhole in Oklahoma City. Sarah Charlton reports
Earth Changes
Angel Babcock of New Pekin, Ind., was found after her family's mobile home was destroyed in the storms that ravaged the Midwest and South.
She had been in critical condition at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Ky. Chief nursing officer Cis Gruebbel made the announcement about her death.
Her grandfather, Jack Brough, had told the Courier-Journal of Louisville earlier that she had suffered head injuries and that the weekend was a critical time for her.
The girl's death brings the overall toll from the storms to 39 across five states.
She had been in critical condition at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Ky. Chief nursing officer Cis Gruebbel made the announcement about her death.
Her grandfather, Jack Brough, had told the Courier-Journal of Louisville earlier that she had suffered head injuries and that the weekend was a critical time for her.
The girl's death brings the overall toll from the storms to 39 across five states.
© Reuters / Gene Blevins
Firefighters battle the Powerhouse wildfire at the Angeles National Forest, with the fire now having destroyed several homes near the Lake Hughes area in California June 1, 2013
Firefighters battle the Powerhouse wildfire at the Angeles National Forest, with the fire now having destroyed several homes near the Lake Hughes area in California June 1, 2013
The Powerhouse Fire, which broke out near a Santa Clarita hydroelectric plant in the Los Angeles County on Thursday, has more than tripled in size overnight. A total of 2,100 personnel are now fighting the fire, with air tankers and helicopters deployed to the scene.
Tornadoes conjure up images of massive funnel clouds tearing over the expansive Great Plains of the United States during springtime, but tornadoes range in size and strength and can happen anywhere, at any time of the year.
Although freak accidents happen ― and the most violent tornadoes can level a house ― most tornadoes are much weaker than the monster EF5s (the highest tornado rating) most people imagine, the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center (SPC) says in their tornado FAQ, and knowing proper tornado safety tips can help you get through the storm,.
But there are a lot of tornado safety folklore and myths out there, so it can be hard to know what advice to follow. Here are five of the most pervasive tornado safety myths, as well as a few tips to follow.
Although freak accidents happen ― and the most violent tornadoes can level a house ― most tornadoes are much weaker than the monster EF5s (the highest tornado rating) most people imagine, the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center (SPC) says in their tornado FAQ, and knowing proper tornado safety tips can help you get through the storm,.
But there are a lot of tornado safety folklore and myths out there, so it can be hard to know what advice to follow. Here are five of the most pervasive tornado safety myths, as well as a few tips to follow.
© twitter user@stasiarik
Meteorologists say the anomaly occurred because a cyclone brought cold Arctic air from Kara Sea region into Siberia dropping, temperature to lows typical for summer north of the Arctic Circle.
Bloggers were at a loss when commenting the issue.
"Snow in Kemerovo TODAY? That's hardcore. The weather must've forgot it's June."
"With a sense of terror has just learnt it's been snowing in Kemerovo. What's next?"
"Tornado in the US. Floods in Czech Republic. SNOW in Kemerovo!"
The city in South Siberia is situated on 55°22'17.58" north latitude but even for that region -2 Celsius on June 2 morning is over the top. The region has seasonal inland climate, which means really cold winters and very hot summers.
© AFP Photo / Michael Cizek
The Vltava river is flooded on June 2, 2013 in Prague
The Vltava river is flooded on June 2, 2013 in Prague
Heavy rain over the weekend has resulted in flood warnings in west, north, central and south Bohemia.
At least one woman is dead, after her home collapsed in Trebenice u Prahy, southwest of Prague and two people are missing after their raft overturned on the River Berounka in Hlasna Treban in central Bohemia.
In Prague, rescue workers, aided by the army, have set up flood barriers for the first time since the devastating floods of 2002. Hospitals, retirement homes and cultural institutions as well as the zoo are being evacuated across the city.
A state of emergency has been declared in the Czech Republic due to the threat of flooding, Prime Minister Petr Nečas announced in a televised address.
The Weather Channel Tornado Hunt Team is safe, but shaken up after their chase vehicles took a direct hit by a violent tornado west of Oklahoma City.
Meteorologist Mike Bettes was chasing the monster rain-wrapped tornado near El Reno, Okla. when he says the storm picked up the heavy chase SUV and threw it an estimated 200 yards.
"We were ahead of the storm. We stopped to broadcast and I saw a large violent wedge tornado," Bettes said in a live phone interview after he established phone connection after the incident.
"What we were trying to do was just get away from it and get to the south side of it," Bettes said. "But what ended up happening was all three of our vehicles that we chase with were all hit by it."
He remembers being thrown into the air.
"It was like we were floating. We were tumbling. We were airborne at least one point and we were floating. Then we weren't tumbling anymore and we came down hard."
Bettes was nursing minor injuries Saturday, including stitches in his hand. All the occupants were wearing safety belts and walked away from the banged-up vehicle.
"My life flashed before my eyes."
It's the first time one of the network's personalities has been injured while covering violent weather, spokeswoman Shirley Powell said.
'Cursed spring' of relentless rain: Italy just went through its wettest spring in at least 150 years
Italy shivers through 'cursed spring' of relentless rain
June normally heralds the arrival of summer heat, but 2013's capricious weather is fuelling new meteorological obsession
As the breeze swept in under the cafe's parasols and the sky darkened over Rome, waiter Apu Haq exchanged commiserations with a customer nursing an espresso and a scowl. "They said summer was going to arrive this week," remarked Haq, "and instead came winter." Within minutes, torrential rain was lashing the cobblestones as thunder rumbled in the distance. "It's all the wrong way round," said a bewildered Haq, from Bangladesh. "It's incredible. I've been here for 10 years now and I've never seen anything like it. It's too strange."
Italian springs are often strange, but this one will perhaps be remembered as particularly capricious. As with much of northern Europe, the country has shivered its way through a good deal of the year. In the north-west, according to the Italian meteorological society, residents have had the coldest May since 1991. In much of the north-east, the spring has been the wettest for at least 150 years. A mountain stage of the Giro d'Italia bike race was called off due to snow and ice. Beach resorts in Tuscany have been flooded. Many farmers have suffered huge damage to their crops.
Now, as June arrives, it should technically be summer. But it certainly doesn't feel like it. "Last year, by this point, we were going to the sea. At the beginning of June we went down to the Fori Imperiali and sunbathed," said Mario Ramelli, a street-corner florist in central Rome. This spring's brutto tempo has been a topic of conversation with many of his customers - that is, those who stop to buy a pot of pansies or, optimistically, some sunflowers. "When it's horrid and wet, people hurry by," said Ramelli. "It's not good for work."
June normally heralds the arrival of summer heat, but 2013's capricious weather is fuelling new meteorological obsession
© Alessandra Benedetti/Corbis
Pope Francis surrounded by Catholics sheltering from the heavy rain under umbrellas in St Peter's Square this week.
Pope Francis surrounded by Catholics sheltering from the heavy rain under umbrellas in St Peter's Square this week.
Italian springs are often strange, but this one will perhaps be remembered as particularly capricious. As with much of northern Europe, the country has shivered its way through a good deal of the year. In the north-west, according to the Italian meteorological society, residents have had the coldest May since 1991. In much of the north-east, the spring has been the wettest for at least 150 years. A mountain stage of the Giro d'Italia bike race was called off due to snow and ice. Beach resorts in Tuscany have been flooded. Many farmers have suffered huge damage to their crops.
Now, as June arrives, it should technically be summer. But it certainly doesn't feel like it. "Last year, by this point, we were going to the sea. At the beginning of June we went down to the Fori Imperiali and sunbathed," said Mario Ramelli, a street-corner florist in central Rome. This spring's brutto tempo has been a topic of conversation with many of his customers - that is, those who stop to buy a pot of pansies or, optimistically, some sunflowers. "When it's horrid and wet, people hurry by," said Ramelli. "It's not good for work."
© USGS
2013-06-02 05:43:06 UTC
2013-06-02 13:43:06 UTC+08:00 at epicenter
Location
24.000°N 121.000°E depth=10.0km (6.2mi)
Nearby Cities
4km (2mi) NE of Buli, Taiwan
32km (20mi) E of Zhongxing New Village, Taiwan
35km (22mi) ENE of Nantou, Taiwan
36km (22mi) ESE of Taichung, Taiwan
725km (450mi) ENE of Hong Kong, Hong KongTechnical Details
The death and damage wrought by new tornadoes that plowed through Oklahoma won't be completely known until the sun comes up Saturday morning.
A handful of fresh storms killed at least five people Friday, authorities said, less than two weeks after a monstrous cyclone waylaid the town of Moore, a suburb of Oklahoma City. At least 71 others were injured statewide.
Two of the victims in Oklahoma died within twenty miles of Moore, said medical examiner spokeswoman Amy Elliot.
Though the tornadoes were not as strong as the EF-5 twister that killed 24 on May 20, fear drove some people into their cars to flee them, some of whom got caught in heavy rains and flash flooding.
Comment: How's the weather where you are?
Notice anything about the climate in the past couple of years?